CRAWL (15)

A father and daughter discover they are far from the top of the evolutionary food chain in Alexandre Aja’s diabolical masterclass in sustained tension and jump-out-of-seat scares. Set in Florida during a category five hurricane, Crawl is essentially Jaws with alligators, albeit with considerably more on-screen gore courtesy of the French director of the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes. Michael and Shawn Rasmussen’s script is as lean and muscular as the apex predators, which eviscerate or death roll almost every character that dares to dip a toe into rising flood waters unleashed by Mother Nature’s fury. Stakes are high and no one is safe in Aja’s streamlined picture. West Sussex-born actor Kaya Scodelario, sporting a flawless accent between blood-curdling screams, is a spunky and instantly relatable heroine. She plays Haley Keller, a member of the University of Florida’s intercollegiate swimming team - nickname, the Gators - who receives a concerned telephone call from her older sister, Beth (Morfydd Clark). Hurricane Wendy is about to pummel the east coast and their father Dave (Barry Pepper) isn’t answering Beth’s calls to check he has evacuated the flood zone. Haley defies the advice of local police and gingerly drives down rain-lashed back roads to find her old man at the family’s home in Coral Lake, which has been sold following her parents’ divorce. Chaos ensues. Action set-pieces are breathlessly orchestrated for maximum shock value and every time it feels safe to draw breath, Aja delivers an unexpected jolt to send popcorn skittering in all directions.